CHAPTER 083
"Me, my story?"
What story?
I was startled, my eyes widening as I saw Phillip laughing silently.
Could it be that Phillip talked about me to the Empress?
While I was thinking, the Empress continued speaking.
"When you're in the Empress's palace, people around you tell you about the outside world. My maids do that, and the Crown Prince is one of them too."
It was Phillip, after all!
How did Phillip talk about me to the Empress? I was a bit worried...
"They say you're a bit of a topic in the social circles."
"No way, Your Majesty."
"Don't take it badly. Working hard is a good thing."
The Empress gave me a cool smile before looking away.
Was that the end of what she wanted to ask me? I was glad I didn't make any mistakes.
The public conversations with the Empress continued one by one.
The last one was Charlotte.
"You live with your brother, right?"
"Yes, Your Majesty."
"You've lived in the estate all this time, how is life in the capital?"
"Yes. I've met many good people, so I'm satisfied."
Then, the Empress asked an unexpected question.
"I see. Have you met any man you like?"
A man she likes?
She said she wanted to have a comfortable conversation, but to ask something like this...
It was a topic the Empress hadn't asked anyone else before.
The Empress's questions were similar but varied a bit depending on the lady.
Could it be that Phillip told the Empress about getting rejected?
He's not that kind of mama's boy character, is he?
Other ladies were also surprised, but the Empress continued without care.
"Lady Yaniels, what kind of man do you find ideal? I'm curious if you could tell me."
"Ah..."
Charlotte looked quite flustered.
She took a moment as if organizing her thoughts before speaking.
"I value thoughts above all else. Everyone has different thoughts."
"Thoughts, I see. Then, those who got rejected by you didn't meet that standard."
"Excuse me?"
"It would be good for those who admire you to know this."
The Empress gave a leisurely smile.
Even though she said that, didn't the Empress already know?
Phillip was interested in Charlotte.
And that Charlotte rejected Phillip's feelings!
Phillip wasn't the male lead I thought, but he wasn't the type to gossip.
So, the Empress might have sensed it herself.
Just as I noticed when I dealt with Phillip before.
You can feel the atmosphere when discussing engagements and such, right?
Even while I was deducing, the conversation continued.
The Empress asked Charlotte a few more ordinary questions.
Then, she looked at the other ladies.
It seemed her curiosity about Charlotte had ended.
"Is there any interesting news from outside lately?"
The Empress asked everyone.
What kind of news would interest the Empress...?
"Though I hear stories from others, it's probably different from what you ladies talk about."
Everyone was cautious, not just me.
"My maids are my age, and the Crown Prince is my son. What do young ladies usually talk about these days?"
Everyone carefully considered their answers.
The meeting ended only after two hours.
As the ladies left the Empress's palace, they seemed relieved.
They whispered in small voices.
"Was today's meeting really about finding a Crown Princess?"
"Seeing that His Highness the Crown Prince was there, it doesn't seem entirely wrong."
"But we only had conversations?"
Then, Lady Redmond spoke up clearly.
"That's why I was very careful with my answers. You never know, right?"
Bella seemed indifferent about becoming the Crown Princess.
"Is it that great?"
Fortunately, she spoke softly.
Even Charlotte, who answered well earlier, looked troubled.
"I didn't expect her to ask me such a thing."
Indeed.
"But since they're selecting a Crown Princess, His Highness will find a good match."
I spoke up for the flustered Charlotte.
"That's a relief."
Charlotte nodded with a faint smile.
Three weeks passed.
The announcement about selecting a Crown Princess, which seemed imminent, never came.
The eager ladies were quite disappointed.
"Was the meeting really just a gathering for the Empress to chat with the ladies?"
Charlotte was curious.
I was just as curious.
What was the rumor Lady Bolton heard? Was it really baseless?
Even Phillip showing up raised the ladies' expectations.
In any case, it was good for Charlotte.
It confirmed that Phillip's feelings for her had ended.
There was definitely no feeling, right? The way Phillip looked at Charlotte.
I thought the main characters would naturally end up together, but it was really different from the original.
I fully realized that this world and the original I knew didn't match.
* * *
By the way, Lewis seemed concerned about this.
"Are you curious why they're not selecting a Crown Princess?"
"There was such a rumor, so I'm curious."
"You seem oddly expectant."
Lewis looked at me with narrowed eyes.
"You're not interested in that, are you?"
What a ridiculous question.
"Of course not. Everyone thought it would happen, but it didn't. It really seemed like they were selecting a Crown Princess."
That doesn't mean I expected to be a candidate!
I clearly stated, and Lewis quickly dropped his suspicion.
"That meeting really had you worried."
Lewis couldn't control whether I accepted the Empress's invitation, so it was understandable.
Refusing such an invitation was rare.
Lewis held a high position too. A duke's nephew and a marquis. The Tower Master.
"About the ring, I mentioned last time."
Suddenly, Lewis changed the subject.
"Oh, yes."
"Do you want to go see it today?"
"Today? Aren't you busy?"
"I'm fine. Are you free?"
"Of course. It's not like I have much to do. But you don't have to adjust to me..."
"I want to."
Lewis pointed at the silver ring we matched.
"It's too simple, right?"
"Simple is its charm."
Anyway, I ended up going out with Lewis.
Lewis headed to a jewelry store full of expensive accessories.
There, he picked a ruby ring.
"How about this? It looks like it would suit you."
It was quite a fancy ring decorated with flowers around the ruby. The red seemed to match my orange hair.
But is it right for me to buy a ring alone?
The ring talk was about how our friendship rings were too cheap, and he wanted to buy better ones.
Lewis also wore the cheap silver ring, right?
So I cautiously asked.
"Shall we match them again this time? Not just for me."
"Is that okay?"
Instead of saying it's unnecessary, Lewis asked this.
He reacted just like that. It would've been very disappointing if I hadn't asked.
But isn't this a couple ring? Matching couple rings again and he's this happy.
...This is why I'm confused.
Is Lewis's affection for me really just friendship?
Does he have other feelings?
Since it wasn't the right time to think about it, I asked the jeweler.
"Do you have designs that can be worn by both men and women?"
"Are you looking for that? For whom?"
"For the person next to me."
"Oh my."
The owner's eyes changed subtly. I quickly added to avoid misunderstanding.
"He's a friend. It's a friendship ring, a friendship ring."
"Ah, I see."
I heard Lewis chuckle beside me.
I pretended not to notice out of embarrassment.
"If it's for both of you, we have these designs!"
The owner showed us a few rings.
"This one doesn't look like a set?"
I pointed to one of the rings.
The men's and women's designs were completely different.
The men's ring had no gems and was uniquely carved on the underside, while the women's ring was thinner with small diamonds.
Oh, there is a common feature.
The thin side of the women's ring was also intricately carved like the men's.
"For men who find gems cumbersome, this is good."
"I see."
This seem reasonably priced?
Maybe because it's simple, it's cheaper than the others.
Staring at the ring intently, Lewis spoke.
"Don't worry about the price. Choose what you like."
He must think I'm hesitating because of the price.
"No. Not because of the price, I think this is nice!"
"Really? Isn't it too simple?"
"If it's too fancy, it's burdensome to wear every day."
Lewis should agree with this, right?
"This level is just right."
When I said that, Lewis looked at the ring for a moment before speaking.
"Well, this is simple enough that no one would notice it's a set."
He must be referring to Bella as 'no one.'
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